IRS implimenting MEF formating

[bringing enlightenment]

Although many of you are not aware, the IRS is requiring that all software developers and software vendors rewrite their formatting for next year to 100% MEF. 3 software companies changed to that formatting this year, TRX, ATX, and RedGear. They are ahead of the game than those software companies that are still performing on legacy formatting. Although your competitors around you are efiling and transmitting you need to understand that next year they will ALL be going through the same struggles. CCH has announced that Taxwise is changing immediately afrer tax season is over for 2012. The IRS is not regulating just preparers but software companies too. Honestly next year the three companies that switched to MEF will be exceeding all others that have not prepared for the change. So give them a break and dont start going off on the next person that picks up the phone when you call into any of the companies because you dont understand or feel like you are being "robbed", because I can reassure assure you that it doesnt get your situation resolved any faster nor does the rep on the other end of the line deserve to be talked down to. Where is the professionalism that we all stand for? My advice is do research and ask the right questions when your business depends on them instead of pointing fingers because of the requirements that are being set upon software companies as they are required of you to do taxes as a preparer.

[CathysTaxes]

Although many of you are not aware, the IRS is requiring that all software developers and software vendors rewrite their formatting for next year to 100% MEF. 3 software companies changed to that formatting this year, TRX, ATX, and RedGear. They are ahead of the game than those software companies that are still performing on legacy formatting. Although your competitors around you are efiling and transmitting you need to understand that next year they will ALL be going through the same struggles. CCH has announced that Taxwise is changing immediately afrer tax season is over for 2012. The IRS is not regulating just preparers but software companies too. Honestly next year the three companies that switched to MEF will be exceeding all others that have not prepared for the change. So give them a break and dont start going off on the next person that picks up the phone when you call into any of the companies because you dont understand or feel like you are being "robbed", because I can reassure assure you that it doesnt get your situation resolved any faster nor does the rep on the other end of the line deserve to be talked down to. Where is the professionalism that we all stand for? My advice is do research and ask the right questions when your business depends on them instead of pointing fingers because of the requirements that are being set upon software companies as they are required of you to do taxes as a preparer.

Your post only explains issues with efiling. What about all the issues many of us are having with a paper return? I haven't seen what's happened with ATX or Redgear (I've heard that Redgear is at least refunding their customers), but the TRX program can't even finish a simple paper return.

[David1980]

There is no legacy e-filing for tax year 2012 (the IRS has some limited system in place as a fail safe for a MeF system failure, however it's not being used.) ALL tax software is using MeF. Had you posted this 1-year ago, it would have been partially true although I'm not sure which companies were MeF and which weren't last year.

[Don in Upstate NY]

Agree that this is last year's news. I know that at least TaxWise and RedGear were (Federal) MeF for the TY 2011 season. Most of the states were not MeF.

[Lloyd Hudson]

I am not a programmer nor am I computer repairman. However, I know when a program DOES NOT Work. The MeF (whatever that is) has been coming for several years. I do not know how an e-filing format can affect the program before creating an e-file. Our revenue is halved. Production is non existent. Program even crashed server overnight.

[Crank]

Really!? I mean...come on! Really!?